If you’re anything like me you might shudder at the thought of having your young ones help in the kitchen. After having 4 babies in 4 years, the many needs of littles took precedence over my love of cooking and baking. Now as I navigate through what was once my haven, I sigh as I […]
Continue reading5 Tips For Cultivating Gratitude
In a study noted at Harvard, psychologists found that giving thanks can actually make you happier. They also found gratitude helpful for people focusing on what they had, instead of what they lacked. As fall turns to winter, shorter amounts of daylight breed depression for many. Instead of succumbing to the negative, why not try […]
Continue readingMagnificent Adversity ~ Finding Purpose in Pain
His face seemed sad as he sat quietly beside me. I could tell he wanted to chat, to tell me the thoughts currently plaguing his mind. I struggled knowing the right questions to ask, though I could guess exactly what was coming. I had urged him to go to an overnight multi church event, telling him […]
Continue readingLiving Deliberately
Today my sweet friend buries her mother. As I sat and chatted with her a few weeks back, she shared how she had helped her mom pick out the dress and jewelry she would be buried in. As I stood at the casket admiring the sparkle of the fabric and the beauty of the necklace, […]
Continue readingFinding My Place
Before I begin, I want to emphasize: *1. I am writing in the spirit of Proverbs 11:14 where it says “Where there is no counsel, the people fall; In the multitude of counselors there is safety” I am hoping to spark a discussion on a subject that has been kind of taboo. It may not […]
Continue readingChoosing Rest
Exodus 33:14 NIV The Lord replied, My presence will go with you and I will give you rest Who among us really gets enough rest? I’ve been engulfed in the hustle and bustle of raising children for nearly 14 years. Rest has not been high on my list of priorities. In the midst […]
Continue readingBeautiful Words
Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones. Proverbs 16:24 The knots in my stomach got a little tighter. I felt my heart breaking into teeny tiny pieces as I sat with my husband listening to the angry voice rage on and on at the other end of […]
Continue readingBeautiful Scars
What if I told you I had a marvelous tip for dealing with scars? If I’d have known at the beginning of this summer how many scars I’d soon acquire, it would have been discouraging. 2 years of illness and a previous major surgery and subsequent hospitalization with sepsis and staph had left me anxious, […]
Continue reading5 years
The darker the night, the brighter the stars, the deeper the grief, the closer is God… Fyoder Dostoevsky I often wondered how I might feel as this date approaches. 5 years. 5 long years. 5 years since God decided it was time for one of his gifts to come back to Him. I had thought […]
Continue readingBetween Two Camps
When I first started writing in public places, I set my heart on writing from real places about real things, real emotions, real life, hoping to focus on the blessings and finding joy in life. Lately, I’ve been accused of airing dirty laundry, of speaking before thinking and being to critical, just to name a […]
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